The Journalist
The Journalist is a mysterious figure in the Yandere Simulator and YanderX worlds. Description "In the 80s, a young man began a promising career as an investigative journalist. He was phenomenal at his job, and was quickly making a name for himself all throughout the nation of Japan. Unfortunately, he may have been TOO good at his job... While investigating a murder in 1989, he correctly identified the perpetrator of the crime. Due to the unusual nature of the case - a schoolgirl accused of murdering a classmate for the sake of love - the media chose to sensationalize the case, resulting in international attention. However, the young murderess was able to escape a guilty verdict by manipulating the emotions of the court, and tricking the world into thinking that the journalist only accused her of murder for the sake of sensational headlines. Everyone bought it, including James Smith, a school student who was also investigating the murders under the identity of The Protector, and as himself while infiltrating the school. As a result of that court case, his reputation was permanently damaged, and his career as a journalist was over. He spiraled into depression and alcoholism. Nobody knows what became of him after he fell out of the public eye. His current whereabouts are unknown." History Told in the Mysterious Tapes, almost three decades before the events of X: Volume One, in the year 1989, he was an aspiring journalist who decided to investigate the murder of a young girl at the nearby local high school. He had to do his research alone, as the police weren't allowed to conduct a formal investigation because of the headmaster and the school was highly concerned with maintaining their reputation. Eventually, The Journalist discovered a peculiar school girl who was stalking one of her upperclassmen. Unknown to him at the time, an American vigilante going under the name of The Protector was also investigating the case after he'd been alerted to a prior murder committed by the same killer. Through student interviews and some research, he realized the girl was the one causing all of these things to happen to her crush's admirers. He told the police and convinced them to take the girl into custody, but she convinced the court with her excessive lies. There seemed to be no one who didn't believe her story and The Journalist's reputation plummeted. After receiving a chilling warning from an unstable James and the 1989 girl, he endured years of public harassment no matter what the circumstance. That is, until he met and consequentially fell in love with a woman about a year after the court case. This woman was caring, to a certain aggressive and clingy extreme. Despite The Journalist's puzzlement at her behavior, he admits that this was exactly what he needed. After six months of dating, the two got married. The Journalist's wife died while giving birth to an only daughter. He neglected his child, who raised herself into an independent teenage girl who could possibly attend Akademi High School. 2019 Sometime after the events of the first 3 chapters, The Journalist decided to attempt again to catch Ryoba Aishi in the act of murder, though after one failed attempt to catch her, he began to fear for his life. He fled out of Japan and into another continent, and his current exact whereabouts are unknown. His last words spoken in the Mysterious Tapes are a tearful "I love you." He will not make an appearance in X: Chapter Three like first planned, as X: Chapters 1-4 all take place prior to the events of Yandere Simulator. Personality He has good intentions when stalking Ryoba and wants to do what's right. He appreciates fame, but he wouldn't just accuse a high school girl just for it. The Journalist is very observant and great at finding clues. He shows that when he first deals with Ryoba, seeing her stalk her Senpai, and a few decades later when she stalks a young woman. Relationships Ryoba Aishi Their backstory and how they interacted is told throughout the Mysterious Tapes. There is some more information on the Basement Tapes. The Journalist can almost go blind with rage when he sees Ryoba, though he still runs away from her after she found him stalking her after a few decades. The Journalist's revenge has seemingly failed for now. Although he may appear again in the YanderX Series Ryoba doesn't kill The Journalist right away after the court case and he lives until sometime shortly before Ayano Aishi's first day of high school, as seen from Basement Tape #10. Ryoba follows him to the location he traveled to after fleeing Japan, but it's currently unknown what happens next. The Journalist's Wife Despite her strange (and almost Aishi-like) behavior, The Journalist appeared to love her greatly and was deeply saddened when she died. The Journalist's Daughter In his tapes The Journalist mentions a daughter that he doesn't spend anytime with, a daughter that he knows nothing about, only that she spends a lot of time on the computer, makes a lot of money and occasionally comes home with blood on her. YandereDev revealed who she was, although revealing it here may be a spoiler. Skills and Abilities The Journalist is an incredibly skilled detective, deducing that Ryoba Aishi was the one behind the murders, a feat which even James Smith couldn't achieve. He can also easily stalk people to find out information or evidence if he's attempting to bring said person to justice. It is currently unknown if he is capable of self defense, although it is most likely that he does. Trivia * The Journalist's Daughter attends Akademi High School. * The Saikou Family are fully aware of his existence, and are aware of the true nature of both Ryoba and Ayano Aishi.